China to construct more energy-efficient buildings - Xinhua

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China wants energy-efficient buildings to account for 30 percent of all new construction projects by 2020 to bring its building energy consumption ratio closer to that of developed countries, the official Xinhua News Agency reported on Sunday. In order to achieve that goal, the government will step up incentives for green buildings, improve industry standards and promote technological improvements and the development of related industries, Xinhua reported, citing a document released by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development. ...

Related

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China wants energy-efficient buildings to account for 30 percent of all new construction projects by 2020 to bring its building energy consumption ratio closer to that of developed countries, the official Xinhua News Agency reported on Sunday.

China wants energy-efficient buildings to account for 30 percent of all new construction projects by 2020 to bring its building energy consumption ratio closer to that of developed countries, the official ...

Guest blog by Andrew Bennett, International Trade Specialist and Smart Grid Industry Analyst at Commerce's
International Trade Administration in the Office of Energy and Environmental
Industries.
With the Department of Commerce focused on winning the
future and driving the president’s vision for a growing clean energy economy, it’s
good to see early results from these efforts in the form of the green jobs of
today. Green Buildings is a key sector where we’re laying the foundations for
the green jobs of the future.
Last month, Siemens
USA announced 400 new positions across 39 states in its green technologies
division, which is focused on helping
cities across the country reduce energy costs through the implementation of
a host of green building technology systems.
Meanwhile, in Baltimore, MTC Logistics is working with
Virginia-based solar energy services provider HelioSage and Southern Energy
Management, a green building services company from North Carolina, to
build one of the largest roof mounted solar installations in the state of Maryland.
These ambitious green building projects not only create
jobs, they also drive innovation, cut costs for businesses and government and
help achieve important environmental benefits.

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China will provide 31.87 billion yuan ($5 billion) in subsidies for the renovation of rural households this year, the state-run Xinhua News Agency said on Saturday. The pilot scheme will cover 4 million poor rural homes, the agency cited a joint statement by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the Ministry of Finance and the National Development & Reform Commission. Each dilapidated house will be given 7,500 yuan on average, while 130,000 poverty-stricken rural households located in the border areas will be granted another 2,500 yuan in subsidies each. ...

NEW DELHI: The International Solar Alliance (ISA) of over 120 countries, which was launched at the Global Climate Summit in Paris, will spearhead world efforts on solar energy, the government today said. To boost solar power in developing nations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had last month unveiled ISA with French President Francois Hollande at the Paris COP21 climate summit. "International Solar Alliance (ISA) launched in Paris by PM @narendramodi and President @fhollande will spearhead world efforts on solar energy," Power and Coal Minister tweeted.

In a new working paper, David Austin argues that for a variety of reasons, private agents do not optimize with respect to energy efficiency measures. From Addressing Market Barriers to Energy Efficiency in Buildings:
...

Imagine millions of networked nanosensors embedded in data centers and office buildings, an Internet made corporeal to maximize energy efficiency while minimizing the environmental impact of a high-tech society. That may be the future of green IT (more on that later) but the reality over the next few years will be a bit more prosaic.It’s the stuff your parents nagged you about – turn off the lights, turn down the air conditioning.